Hats Off to Jean

photo courtesy of Peter Narvaez In accepting the role of Artistic Director I will attempt to fill the very large shoes vacated by Jean Hewson — it won’t be easy. Under Jean’s dynamic mandate the Festival has grown and thrived, especially through the inception of the workshops program. This is a component that many regard as the highlight of the Festival, where performers and audiences interact in personalized small group settings. Attendees to any of this year’s eighteen workshops can attest to their great popularity and success. Fortunately (especially for me!), Jean will continue to be a SJFAC volunteer. As she moves on with new musical projects and other life challenges, we wish her all the best. “Thanks Jean!”

For those of you who don’t know me (who is this guy with the Spanish name?), I’ve been associated with the Festival since its inception thirty years ago as a musician, volunteer, member of the Board of Directors, and first co-editor (with the redoubtable Jean Hewson!) of the Broadside. As a folklorist and musician I taught in the Department of Folklore at Memorial University (MUN) for over thirty years, latterly in the School of Music as well, where among other subjects I taught courses in traditional music, blues and jazz. I currently serve on: the executive board of the Canadian Society for Traditional Music; the East Coast Music Awards’ (ECMA) Stompin’ Tom Connors Award Committee; the Juno Blues Committee; the board of the Research Centre for the Study of Music, Media, and Place (MMaP, MUN), and the Folk Alliance Lifetime Achievement Award Committee. Occasionally I am a juror for the ECMA Awards, the Juno Awards and the Canadian Folk Music Awards. In addition, I continue to be the Audio-Visual Editor of Ethnologies, the journal of the Folklore Studies Association of Canada and the webmaster for www.rowdyblues.com, a developing website dedicated to the blues in Newfoundland and Labrador. I have assisted in documenting the traditions of the province with media productions (video/LP/CD) of the Buchans miners, Wilf Doyle, Ray Johnson and Dorman Ralph. Most recently, I have produced, with Dr. Beverley Diamond, a compilation CD of field recordings from the MUN Folklore and Language Archive of Newfoundland and Labrador Folklore: A Sampler (reviewed in this issue). Similarly, many of my publications have documented the province’s folklore, most notably the merry wake, fairies (The Good People: New Fairylore Essays), labour songs and moratorium songs.

Given the multitude of tasks ahead, I look forward to working with the remarkable team of dedicated volunteers who make up the backbone of the SJFAC. To become a volunteer yourself, please contact Caroline Clarke at 579-2385 or email her (sadie@nf.sympatico.ca). Next year’s theme of “fusion,” the melding of musical traditions, should present us with exciting challenges.

Peter Narvaez wears very large shoes, himself. The Council is delighted that
he’ll be wearing them at the 31st Annual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival.

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	Hats Off to Jean! by Peter Narvaez (New Artistic Director) The Broadside Vol 10. No. 2 October 2006

	In accepting the role of Artistic Director I will attempt to fill the very large shoes vacated by Jean Hewson — it won’t be easy. Under Jean’s dynamic mandate the Festival has grown and thrived, especially through the inception of the workshops program. This is a component that many regard as the highlight of the Festival, where performers and audiences interact in personalized small group settings. Attendees to any of this year’s eighteen workshops can attest to their great popularity and success. Fortunately (especially for me!), Jean will continue to be a SJFAC volunteer. As she moves on with new musical projects and other life challenges, we wish her all the best. “Thanks Jean!” For those of you who don’t know me (who is this guy with the Spanish name?), I’ve been associated with the Festival since its inception thirty years ago as a musician, volunteer, member of the Board of Directors, and first co-editor (with the redoubtable Jean Hewson!) of the Broadside. As a folklorist and musician I taught in the Department of Folklore at Memorial University (MUN) for over thirty years, latterly in the School of Music as well, where among other subjects I taught courses in traditional music, blues and jazz. I currently serve on: the executive board of the Canadian Society for Traditional Music; the East Coast Music Awards’ (ECMA) Stompin’ Tom Connors Award Committee; the Juno Blues Committee; the board of the Research Centre for the Study of Music, Media, and Place (MMaP, MUN), and the Folk Alliance Lifetime Achievement Award Committee. Occasionally I am a juror for the ECMA Awards, the Juno Awards and the Canadian Folk Music Awards. In addition, I continue to be the Audio-Visual Editor of Ethnologies, the journal of the Folklore Studies Association of Canada and the webmaster for www.rowdyblues.com, a developing website dedicated to the blues in Newfoundland and Labrador. I have assisted in documenting the traditions of the province with media productions (video/LP/CD) of the Buchans miners, Wilf Doyle, Ray Johnson and Dorman Ralph. Most recently, I have produced, with Dr. Beverley Diamond, a compilation CD of field recordings from the MUN Folklore and Language Archive of Newfoundland and Labrador Folklore: A Sampler (reviewed in this issue). Similarly, many of my publications have documented the province’s folklore, most notably the merry wake, fairies (The Good People: New Fairylore Essays), labour songs and moratorium songs. Given the multitude of tasks ahead, I look forward to working with the remarkable team of dedicated volunteers who make up the backbone of the SJFAC. To become a volunteer yourself, please contact Caroline Clarke at 579-2385 or email her (sadie@nf.sympatico.ca). Next year’s theme of “fusion,” the melding of musical traditions, should present us with exciting challenges. Peter Narvaez wears very large shoes, himself. The Council is delighted that he’ll be wearing them at the 31st Annual Newfoundland & Labrador Folk Festival. (back to table of contents)